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Serving the Community of Hudson Since 1902

Community Newspaper Company ■ www.wickedlocal.com/hudson DECEMBER 2 – 8, 2010 52 Pages ■ Vol. 127, No. 34 ■ 75¢

5
WHAT’S Ways to jump-start
UP the holidays
Breakfast with Santa
HUDSON — The Hudson Em-
blem Club plans a Breakfast with
Santa on Saturday, Dec. 4, from 9
to 11 a.m. at the Hudson Lodge of
Elks, 99 Park St., Hudson. Come
and enjoy donuts, juice and hot
chocolate. Every child receives a
gift from Santa. Admission is do-
nation of a canned good to be
used to fill Christmas baskets or
for The Food Pantry. Bring you
camera and get pictures of your
child with Santa and Mrs. Claus,
or just sit and listen to Christmas
stories being read. For more in- Santa will
formation call Barbara Sawyer arrive in style
at 978-568-9291 or Dorothy Bar- at the annual
reira at 978-562-5276. Downtown
Holiday Stroll,
as he did in this
Walk the trails photo from last
of Marlborough year’s festival.
See “Celebrate
State Forest the Season” on
MARLBOROUGH — Want to page 24 for
more details
explore Marlborough trails? about these and
Enjoy hiking in the company of a other events.
guided group the first Saturday of
each month. Our Dec. 4 walk is 9
a.m. at Ghiloni Park and Marl-
borough State Forest. Discover FILE PHOTO
the rustic trails and New England
woodlands near the Ghiloni
Downtown Holiday Stroll

1
recreation area. The walk will be
about 3 miles. Please dress for HUDSON — The annual Hudson Downtown Holiday Stroll has a new date with expanded hours, on Saturday, Dec. 4, 2 to 8 p.m. The event
the weather and wear sturdy will feature horse-drawn hayrides, extended Santa hours, 4H Animal Exhibit, and performances of “Scrooge” presented by the Arts Alliance.
shoes. Free maps. The leader is Downtown businesses will host children’s activities, local music groups and carolers will provide holiday music and a spectacular holiday lighting
Rick Boudrie, an experienced AT ceremony takes place at the town rotary at 6 p.m.
hiker, who enjoys exploring local
trails and observing nature. Di-
Bah, humbug! Celebrate Chanukah Meet the Big Man

3
rections: Go to Ghiloni Park
(near the golf course) on Con- Three performances of A Chanukah celebration will take Santa will appear in no fewer than

cord Road. Meet at the kiosk,
which is near the parking lot and
half-mile oval track.
Robotic Brawl
at the Mall
MARLBOROUGH —
Solomon Pond Mall, 601 Donald
Lynch Blvd., will host local mid-
dle and high school students and
college engineering teams and
2 4
“Scrooge,” a musical version of
Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas
Carol,” take place this weekend at
Town Hall. “Scrooge” will be per-
formed at 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday and at 2 p.m.
Sunday Visit www.upwitharts.org for more de-
tails and ticket information.
place at the J.C. Penney Court at
Solomon Pond Mall on Tuesday,
Dec. 7 at 6 p.m. Visitors can fill and glaze a jelly
doughnut, design their own Chanukah bracelets,
and enjoy live music, hot latkes (potato pan-
cakes), doughnuts, chocolate gelt (coins), and
dreidels.
‘Christmas at the Farm’
four places in Hudson this weekend:
the Holiday Stroll, the Hudson Em-
blem Club’s Breakfast with Santa on
Saturday from 9 to 11 a.m. at the
Elks; the Christmas Fair at First United
Methodist Church, Felton and Pleasant streets,
Saturday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.; and the Annual
St. Nicholas Breakfast at St. Michael School au-
ditorium, Sunday from 8 a.m. to noon.

their combat robots on Dec. 4, 9
a.m.-5 p.m. The battling 15-
pound robots will compete in the
National Robotics League Tour-
nament. Spectators are welcome.
Contact Bryant Laflamme at
blaflamme@assabet.org or call
508-485-9430, Ext. 1437.
Craft fairs in
Marlborough
MARLBOROUGH – A Christ-
mas Crafts Bazaar will be held at
St. Matthias Parish, 409 Hemen-
way St., on Dec. 4, from 9 a.m.-3
p.m. Handmade crafts, baked
goods, fresh Christmas arrange-
ments and swags, a visit by Santa
and more. Refreshments avail-
able at the St. Matthias Cafe. In-
formation: 508-460-9255.
Bolton Manor Nursing Home,
400 Bolton St., Rte. 85, Marlbor-
ough, will also hold a crafts fair
on Thursday, Dec. 2, 10 a.m.-4
p.m. Unique gifts, bake sale and Pantry administrator Anne Marie
raffles featured.
Think summer
HUDSON — Pompositticut
Farm Day Camp, 25 Lewis St.,
Hudson, will have an open house before Thanksgiving Day, a total
on Dec. 4, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Take a of 101 turkeys and baskets brim-
sleigh or wagon ride and find out ming with “the fixin’s” were dis-
more about the camp’s daily ac- tributed to deserving Hudson
tivities and programming for
summer 2011. Learn about the
camp at www.pompositticut-
farm.com. Information: 978-562-
0968.
Snow White, her little friends and 60 decorated trees
will be on display at the Marlborough Historical Society’s
Christmas on the Farm this weekend at the Peter Rice Homestead
in Marlborough.
Faithful volunteers keep Food Pantry strong
By Rosemary Rimkus
CORRESPONDENT
“This is Hudson at its best,”
says Hudson Community Food
Lourens, as she greets volun-
teers, welcomes clients, accepts
gift card donations and other-
wise keeps traffic moving at the
Houghton Street pantry.
On a busy Saturday morning
families. By Wednesday morn-
ing, a final number of 155 turkey
dinners had been distributed.
“This is the biggest year ever,”
says Nick Lourens, Anne Marie’s
husband, and a Pantry co-direc-
tor. The Hudson couple have
been active volunteers at the
Hudson site almost since its
founding 15 years ago.
STAFF PHOTO BY ALLAN JUNG
In motherly fashion, Anne
Marie comforts a client who
apologizes for her neediness, not-
ing it is the first time she has ever
asked for charity. “The hardest
thing for you to do is come
through this door,” says the com-
passionate administrator.
“Thanksgiving and Christmas
holidays tend to be the time peo-
ple remember those who have
hardships,” said Anne Marie,
“and our pantry shelves were
well stocked for this peak time.”
She said a recent food collection
drive by Boy Scouts and church
workers netted a record 8,200
pounds of non-perishable canned
and boxed foods.
The Lourens couple is typical
of the long list of about 50 unpaid
volunteers —obliging, long term,
understanding and faithful. One
volunteer, when he saw his health
failing, provided a substitute.
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Cross the town line for the second week-
end of the Marlborough Historical Society’s
Christmas at the Farm – Festival of Trees
Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Peter
Rice Homestead, 377 Elm St., Marlborough. Enjoy
crafters, special Christmas displays, approximately 60
decorated trees and a model train exhibit. Cost is $5 for
adults; $2 children and seniors; under 5 fr
FILE PHOTO
Santa Claus appears at four events.
“Before he died, Bruce Harris
saw to it that we had a replace-
ment for him,” explained Anne
Marie, “and that is the kind of
people we have.”
The Lourens’ are co-directors
of the Pantry with Hudson resi-
dent Cathy Hart. “Cathy responds
to the Pantry telephone calls, de-
termines the need, supervises vol-
unteers, contacts schools, and
gets the ball rolling to respond,”
said Anne Marie Lourens.
An official with Avidia Bank of
Hudson and mother of two grown
daughters, Lourens was recruited
by a high school classmates, Paul
Johnson, in the Pantry’s early or-
ganizational years and took over
as check-in clerk in 2000. Her
husband said he offered to “come
on down” about 12 years ago, PHOTO BY ROSEMARY RIMKUS
when he began stacking shelves. At right, Hudson residents Anne Marie and Nick Lourens, longtime
“He has since become a ‘jack of volunteers at the pantry at 28 Houghton St., check on the list of
FOOD PANTRY, page 13 workers in preparation for a busy holiday season.